8/3/11

The Jeevan Vidya workshop: An Introduction to A. Nagraji Sharma’s Coexistentialist Holistic Philosophy with Mahendra Singh

Co-existential-ism ~ “sah-astitva-vaad” or jivan vidya ~ “self-knowledge”

Prologue – Three possibilities for theology:

1. Divisive, unverifiable assertions about form(s) (duality) vs. formlessness of God [Berkeleyan idealism/solipsism/emanation]

2. Reactionary, equally unverifiable atheism3. Agnosticism – accepting the unverifiability of ultimate reality as a

paradoxical sort of sight (compare the idea of neti neti – “neither/nor” as a [Popperian] way of discarding falsehood to get closer to an ineffable truth [“Zetetic skepticism”] with Jainism’s allegory of the blind men and the elephant).

There is something enviable in the mystics’ state of silent wonder, or in the sage’s solitude, as but is this existing in truth, or a way of escaping existence?

Though it may be gratifying to indulge our imaginative faculty, we cannot cure our rational capacity for curiosity—the desire for fulfillment of that curiosity. Imagination intimates satisfaction. Religion has answered with denial and asceticism.

The highest a monk or mystic can get is samadhi—a transcendence of this reality. They might falter if they return.

The rishi, or “seers” (from dr´s, “to see”) who authored the Vedas, existed in a higher but unified field of consciousness and therefore could only speak truth (satyavac). What would the world be like if inhabited by only/mostly truth-speakers?

Preliminary Propositions:

I. Every ‘teaching’ in this course appears as a proposal, and is verifiable.A. Agreeing and disagreeing is not as important as understanding and

experiencing. The point is to self-verify and know.B. Do not accept nor believe; received “wisdom” is only as good as

hearsay and belongs to someone else. Common motives for accepting:i. Fear

ii. Greed/gain

iii. Faith (which forms from the previous two). Holds for atheism and hedonism as well a. Hedonism, or charvak, is one of the six Indian systems. For

a sybarite, the present moment is the most real moment, which gets something right about the human experience.

II. Beliefs can be right or wrong but the lens, or worldview, through which they are verified is also subject to antecedent beliefs.

A. For example, the old saw, “In order to have happiness in this life, pain is necessary.” [cf. Zeus’ monologue in the first chapter of Homer’s Odyssey, which cites human reality as made up of triangles, with two sorrows for every joy]

III. Unhappiness comes from a misalignment between one’s worldview/beliefs and reality [cf. disappointment born from attachment or expectations in Buddhism].

A. Uncertainty, fear, and doubt lead to discomfort—an indication that reality is being obfuscated by false premises/assumptions.

IV. Even in cases where a belief is correct, doubt can persist. Truth is practicable: understanding must be demonstrated, or lived accordingly, through work and behavior, to be authentic and put doubt to rest.

A. “Work” is defined as interaction with the rest of natureB. “Behavior” is interactions with other humans

V. This lived confirmation is not only a verification of truth, but also a demonstration of trust, which always leads to mutual fulfillment [cf Old Norse etymology of trsutr as “strength” (as in, “trusty”) yet this is among the most admirable qualities of children].

A. Truth is definitionally universal, meaning it is unchanging through time, space, and person [cf. Old English etymology of trowth as “faithfulness” or “constancy”].

VI. Truth is confirmed on four levels: 1. Self, 2. Others/relationships, the model of which is the family, 3. Society, and 4. Nature

Coexisitentialist Ontology, Part I

I. First postulate: Matter, Plants, and Animals, the basic triumvirate of nature, exist in interconnected, interdependent/complementary, mutually enriching relationships on earth (and, in theory, all places they exist) at all times. a. Corollary: Relationships between them maximize the desiderata of

diversity, quantity, and quality/prosperity in a balance/equilibrium/harmony (even if natural [non-human] extinctions and ‘invasions’ compromise one of these in the shorter run).

b. Consider a seemingly inert substance such as soil whose goodness is defined by diversity and accommodation, yet it freely gives to enable life and takes back in death in order to enable more life.

II. This deep interconnectivity/complementarity/enrichment holds even after the addition of humanity on three levels:1. Physical, “practicability” through work – The activity of humans living

according to understanding will result in continued mutual prosperity. Humans cannot create this balance and they cannot destroy it without destroying themselves first. Despite working against the natural fecundity of nature (e.g. seedless produce), humans are the only of the four kingdoms that is capable of completely disappearing from this earth.

2. Psychological – In society, as in nature, behavior is universally valid when it is mutually fulfilling, leading to happiness.

3. Confirmations in work and behavior jointly constitute samadhan, or “resolution,” the ensuring of harmony among themselves and with all three kingdoms. This points to a conflict-free world—one without fear, greed, nor violence. Put positively, samadhi means transcending conflict but not physical reality, and living with trust or fearlessness.

To summarize, matter, plants, and animals exist in a pre-human relationship of complementarity or cooperation, in contrast with the essentially competitive paradigm espoused, implicitly or explicitly, by Western philosophy (even in peace and conflict studies) and science (principally through its understanding of evolutionary biology). The non-zero sum character of matter, and the growth and multiplication that characterizes the plant kingdom are paradigmatic for animals and humans as well. We will return to this trope in the section on Nature.

Coexistentialist Epistemology

Proposals are traditionally/customarily verified on the bases of scripture, philosophic authority, or scientific authority (measurements of instruments or equipment). In this course, proposals must be based on self-scrutiny/introspection [~first philosophy] and “natural acceptance.” This may require raising potential counter-examples/refutations as a way of replicating inspection by others.

Science usually proceeds from structure to function, in contrast to the teleological or Aristotelian approach that emphasizes function or purpose to explain structures. In the latter, the mind is seen as the object of nature’s development [deus ex machina?] whereas in the former, it is a felicitious by-product of mounting complexity. Notably, science is premised on differences instead of similarities [though experimental repeatability and physical law can also be seen as a cornerstones of science]. Science can impart technical skill, which concerned with utility or production for bodily need, but not knowledge, which concerns the self.

Like the self, knowledge is continuous (or unlimited) and speaks to desires leading to our end, happiness, such as peace, love, respect, trust, freedom [and knowledge itself?]. “Knowledge”, therefore, is a technical term relating only to these six areas:

1. Self2. Body 3. Family/relationships4. Society5. Nature 6. Existence/the universe

Part I: Knowledge of Self

The object of human fear has moved from natural disasters (divinely wrought flood or drought,), to wild animals/predators, to fear of the inhuman behavior of other humans. Fear can be divided into four sections:

1. Fear of death2. Fear of poverty3. Fear of loss of status4. Fear of disrespect

Trust is the absence of all of these fears. It enables us to see the world differently. Like many religious traditions, coexistentialism seeks to reframe the meaning of death as merely a bodily phenomenon but unlike these, it does not seek to justify this event (or rather the cessation of [experienced] events) by focusing on an otherworldly fate of the soul. The death of living things is the sine qua non for the birth and growth of more living things, without which there is no abundance.

Lightening is frightening but it also helps maintain the conditions for life by aiding in nitrogen fixation. Humans, however, don’t always see this; many things in nature appear bad (hence “natural disasters”, “catastrophe”, etc) because we don’t see their purpose as part of longer-term cycles (e.g. wildfires’ renewal or Nile’s flooding). The only genuinely disastrous events, the only problems, are outcomes of human activity. But even these have solutions. [Q re: genuine catastrophes: Individuals can allegedly escape famine situations when they equip themselves with the proper life tools but what are our particular responsibilities to help those suffering now?]

Farmers in the Indian village of Mandana spend several millions of rupees each year but hunger still exists. Why? Competition: while two to three tractors would be all that are necessary for tilling the 1000 acres in the village, one study counted 197 in the village. Televisions were in similar abundance. Feelings of inferiority led to wastefulness and away from cooperation. Socialization into this psychology of envy is the “hidden curriculum” in schools where one’s shoes or transportation (going barefoot or by bike is seen as shameful) or how well one speaks English are more important than what one says, writes, or thinks [cf Rousseau on the origin of inequality].

True education must fulfill four criteria:

1. Human happiness with optimum health2. The ability to relate with others in mutually fulfilling joyful relationships3. The establishment of order/elimination of dysfunction4. The promotion of balance in nature through sustainable use of resources

In order to be deemed successful, the 20 years spent becoming “educated” would have to promote harmony at all four levels (self, others, society, and nature), and instill confidence (~trust) vs. stress. In other words, they would have to result in (practical) wisdom, which enables one to live life in a truly prosperous way—a way in which virtue accrues to others. Conventional education is too often narrow, occupationally specific, and eristic, actually working against harmony.

Spurious education solely addresses physical need. However ironically, uneducated villagers are often more hospitable—that is, attentive to basic physical needs—than educated Westerners who live in huge, empty houses, and can show greater wisdom in their interpersonal relationships. An educational system premised on a flawed economic model will perpetuate perceived privation. Desires proliferate but needs are finite. Authentic needs are limited to two major areas:

I. Basic/Familial Needs:1. Food – Nourishment2. Clothing and Shelter, grouped together under Protection

In order to be genuinely prosperous and feel abundance, one must have more of each of these than is required.

II. Aspirational/Societal Needs, which are nonetheless natural as areas for innovation:1. Means of communication (telephone and “television”/

videoconferencing)2. Means of transportation

Additionally, one needs the skills to ensure all of these and the principle of

3. Proper use, which applies to all these in terms of time management, but especially the last two. Together, they result in health. Ironically, if there is an excess of these, one will feel a lack & their relationship is reversed: one ceases to use possessions and becomes used by them.

Basic and aspirational needs required for prosperity can be weighted; they relate to the physical/body. They are also limited by time; as desires, they come and go. One cannot eat, even one’s favorite food, indefinitely; its purpose, nourishment, will be lost.

Continuous needs relating to happiness are nonphysical/emotional/psychological; they relate to the “I”/jeevan/consciousness/self. Relationships are not like food; one does not grow tired of love. This applies to self as well; attempting to fill

psychological needs with physical means will end in their frustration or exacerbation. Conversely, self-respect protects against the misuse of physical things for self-validation or lasting satisfaction.

As stated previously, understanding either the physical world or self/consciousness is an activity that beyond a series of events ([thought/motive] voice vibration, sound waves, reception, comprehension). In the self, there are two kinds of activities:

1. Voluntary actions (imagination, thinking, exercise), which are “I” functions, and

2. Involuntary activities (breathing, heartbeat, digestion), which are bodily functions.

Only voluntary acts come with responsibilities [n.b. the essential connection of autonomy/agency to morality].

Categorize each of your daily activities as voluntary or involuntary [or both?]. Which entity is responsible for: imagination/daydreaming, sleeping/dreaming, pleasures and pain: the “I” or the body?

To summarize, knowing comes with practice—the habit of living accordingly; it is something we do versus something we have. A discrepancy between speaking and acting belies a lack of understanding (mere belief). Prosperity is the proof, and it is a matter of resources plus the feeling of abundance, also known as “happiness.” Either one has what she requires, or is assured that she can produce it. Put negatively, there is an absence of all feeling of lack. This state must differ from mere material wealth since there are plenty of unhappy “haves” alongside relatively happy people that look to them as “have nots.” Feeling, as a measure, is subjective; past the basic requirements, need/privation is relative.

When people lack the feeling of abundance, they attempt to replicate prosperity by trying to guarantee access to future resources. The lack of feelings of love, trust, peace etc that comes with genuine prosperity masquerades as material privation, leading to the pursuit of more possessions, which paradoxically leads to further insecurity. If relationships are not sound in family, society, or humanity generally (e.g. worries re: overpopulation), the feeling of insecurity will persist irrespective of the amount of resources mined, provisions stockpiled, or possessions acquired; one will always worry about future security [cf. Hobbes].

The prescription is not to try to mimic the life of the Buddha, hermit, or monk swearing unattachment to physical things (maya) and abandoning our social and familial natures. Coexistentialism is a middle point between this ascetic religious impulse, and the religion of consumerism. It is not a matter of attachment or not; the issue is proper use. The problem is a misapplication of limited resources to the “I”, whose needs are continuous. Understanding the nature and requirements of the body is necessary in striking this balance.

Coexistentialist Epistemology/Knowledge of Self (continued)

Fear can lead to (hyper)consumption and hoarding, which in turn further exploits labor. Resources belong to all, or none, land inclusive. Labor is added, along with inputs such as skill, technology (including management), and time, but the holder of the resource is exploited. Take the example of fine rugs: The putative owners of the resources to make the rug — the shepherd and the factory laborers—often themselves do not own rugs. Those who can afford them are market middlemen trading the commodity and the factory owner/manager.

Exploitation leads to indignation, opposition, struggle, and war and creates further insecurity. But the real source of the lack of assurance was not others (deprivation). Dysfunctional relationships begin with a poor relationship with/understanding of oneself.

Before a plant emerges, what it needs already exists [cf Matthew 6:26 on Providence, “Look at the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, nor reap, nor gather into granaries, and your heavenly Father nourishes them. Are ye not much more excellent than they?”]. Animals are similarly provisioned for, even though some die young or starve [individuals on the way to enlightenment will view this putatively Darwinian spectacle differently; it will reportedly acquire a strange beauty].

The definition of happiness is to live in a state or situation of natural acceptance; a state in which we live in harmony/synergy/order at all six levels. Contradiction/conflict/problem in any of these areas is unhappiness.

“Seeing” is an analogy for understanding but sometimes we need to observe activities/effects in order to get to the ‘truth’ of non visible things, or to visible things’ origin. There are no inherent problems in any of these levels but the way in which we view them can lead to contradictions. The solution is to recognize reality as it truly is.

I. Choice precedes actions but sometimes they are so habitual that they seem involuntary—effortless, like bodily functions. This is an illusion. How much/to what extent can we choose? Continuously, e.g. the potentially infinite number of things we choose not do to.

II. What we choose is preceded by experience, positive or negative. [What about failure to remember bland experiences? Or to put a name with a taste, e.g. red wines?].

III. Before we experience, we analyze, before this, we compare/evaluate. IV. Together, these constitute thought. V. Desires are also influenced through conditioning/belief/images relating to:

1. Preference (liking/disliking) – deals with sensory level2. Health – deals with entire body3. Profit (Price) – deals with physical resources to preserve the body

Considerations of health plus price amount to a cost/benefit analysis to determine “best” but preference can override this, for example, when we know what is good for us but choose the opposite [“incontinence”].

Add to these the forms of decision-making that honor the self:

4. Justice – defined as the “satisfaction point of behavior” between humans, ensuring harmony/mutual fulfillment. Put negatively, behavior that does not contribute to imbalance/poverty/exploitation. Deals with the whole human being and corresponds to contemplation (chintan), for which continuity of happiness is necessary. Justice turns profit into prosperity.

5. Religion/Dharma – redefined by Nagraji to mean harmony with human beings but also deals with nature the rest of nature. Might also translate at resolution/holistic solution/synergy. Corresponds to wisdom

6. Truth – decisions that take into account/deal with the entire universe. Corresponds to realization/enlightenment (anubhau).

Justice is the minimum for human happiness. Recognition of other human beings, of their self and its continuous/emotional needs, will eliminate the unhappiness caused by misrelations based on competition for resources, preferences, self-interest, etc. This is confirmed by our intuitions about justice.

Contemplation is the capability in us able to recognize the needs of selves beyond our own. It answers questions relating to (collective) human ends, which frees individuals from conditioning by giving action a directedness/purposiveness. In other words, it is the beginning of making human behavior definite [~ Confucian sincerity or righteousness]. Reading oneself is more important than reading books. Contemplation allows internal principles to inform desire, rather than images from without. As an animating principle, it is freedom (swa/tantra/ta – “self-organized-ness” vs. par/tantra/ta, “other-organized-ness”). Answers to “why” questions, questions about meaning, come from contemplation.

Unless this faculty is awakened, injustice will remain. Without contemplation, attempts to amend justice will focus on resources, treating it as a distribution problem. (Future) Harmonious relationships will not be assured. Justice does not exist without but begins within, and then extends to every human, beginning with the family. There is no (natural) division between human beings. The most difficult challenge in achieving justice exists not in meditative practice (individual) or proper allocation of resources (economic) but in maintaining healthy relationships (familial/social).

Understanding dharma through one’s actions will allow the human enrichment of nature as well.

As far as the role of the will, only experience/execution/implementation can confirm the reality/veracity of theory in practice (e.g. riding a bike or swimming).

The first 4.5 of these 10 faculties correspond to imagination, which animals enjoy as well, to some degree. However, imagination plus the gift of free-will enables humans to act for the sake of realization/enlightenment through which they can gain comprehension and experience of the universe. The 5 below are inseparable and make up jeevan, consciousness:

1. Experiences + choices = mun(n), Mind2. Comparison/evaluation + analysis = vritti, Attitude3. Contemplation + desire (images/belief/conditioning) = chitta, Cognition4. Understanding/wisdom + will = buddhi, Intellect5. Realization/Enlightenment + authentication = atma, Soul

Unlike the rest of Indian spiritualism and the Abrahamic faiths, “soul” and “spirit” are never discussed separately from the jivan/self/conscious entity. Mind inevitably interacts with body in the holistic approach; the soul does not directly communicate. And unlike materialist/scientific reductionist philosophies, the senses are more useful in expressing/authenticating knowledge than in gaining knowledge. An attempt to use them in the latter fashion will actually hinder comprehension of truth and the eternal. Rather than seeing through the eyes in order to understand nature, the level to which we understand nature will allow us to see. In other words, it is the “I” that sees through the eyes. Any original/authentic philosopher will have engaged in introspection but every human has a soul that resonates with love (“intuition”), an intellect capable of natural acceptance (listening), and is therefore potentially enlightened (realized).

To summarize, thinking, understanding, desiring, choosing, imagining, expecting are activities that define conscious entities. These demand happiness, which is fulfilled by knowledge about our relationship with the six areas.

Knowledge of Self (continued):

Science, which concerns only the psysiochemically defined, involuntary actions deals only with the body. Its requirement is health, which the “I” desires and achieves through nourishment, protection, and their proper use.

Behind every choice is thought, with or without analysis or comparison of physical and psychological need. Behind thought are beliefs or opinions, preferences or desires that are the product of chitran—visualizations or images/imaginings. These are the product of past experience, pre-conditioning (reports), or expectations about the future. The latter can be chimeras—combinations of received images—

but are not truly creative [n.b. paradox of perfect freedom as determined by the idea of perfection (or what is best)].

Images must be verified to see whether they connect with truth. Foreign words are words but they do not communicate a meaning; this can happen even in our own language, e.g. “self”. Contemplation is the faculty that helps elucidate meaning. It can determine whether images are based on knowledge and are from within or are based on belief and from without. Q: How can we gain knowledge of things of which we have no experience? A: (spoiler alert from existence chapter): because the universe is reflected in our own souls [cf. Plato’s Timaeus].

We harness imagination in order to reach the highest thing—enlightenment [cf. Plato’s Phaedrus and the anaology of the soul’s chariot]. Once authenticated, there is a movement back down, to wisdom [cf Aristotle’s first philosophy/epistemology in Metaphysics]. This dual movement uncovers an original state of ananda, eternal bliss.

The moment we obtain knowledge of the universe, the pre-existing harmony in the universe is confirmed and reinforces harmony or peace within. With this process, one’s aim becomes definite; understanding is define; thought is definite, and, most importantly, desire becomes definite (contrary to what we are told about this faculty’s ineluctable ravenousness and our experience of its contradictoriness). There will no desire for happiness, more an action from happiness. Science should also proceed in support of wisdom, which itself supports knowledge; without this anchoring, it will be rootless. When the entirety of desire supports wisdom’s aim, this is harmony.

Once this balance is set, work will automatically ensure prosperity, balance, and mutual enrichment/fulfillment. This is coexistentialism. Matter can be interrupted to make sound; with a body to receive it, this can be received by the ear as music. Nature may be emitting sound constantly to which we are unattuned. Being in harmony is being attuned.

Thus, there are five states, motions, and products/effects in the self:

State: Motion: Product:

Experience Choice

Evaluation/Comparison Thought Happiness

Contemplation Desire/Imaging/Belief Peace

Wisdom/Understanding Will Contentment

Realization/Enlightenment Authentication Everlasting Bliss

Justice exists on the level of consciousness. It is not a matter of fairness nor does it deal with the distribution of resources beyond the proper use by each. It is beyond the physical or even the psychological. If inner peace is ensured, one’s action is always going to lead toward harmony. Reaction to another’s disrespect says more about one’s own existence in this harmony or not. This is the essence of nonviolence—refusing to react at another’s mindless action [and, equally, acting in a way to promote mindfulness].

Prescriptions for practice; what our aims must like be when we take into account the body/others/sociability/world situation:

1. Individuals want the holistic solutions/resolution/clarity that results in happiness

2. Families want prosperity (beyond fulfillment of requirements) that results in peace.

3. Societies want trust/security/fearlessness, which are the natural outcome of the preceding and results in contentment. *Requires every family having prosperity

4. Nature wants coexistence, which results in bliss.

Actualizing real change is not a matter of changing a sufficient number of individuals to change society. Gandhis and Buddhas do not multiply like plants. Neither is the answer to change the system in order to make individuals that are a certain way. Radical change will take place in human relationships, beginning with the family.

“Education is to equip every human being with the ability to ensure sustained happiness in self, prosperity in every family, trust in society, and harmonious coexistence in entire nature.” -Nagraji

The human is a coexistence of I/consciousness and body, which communicate through the brain. These need happiness and health, respectively. Happiness is ensured by living and understanding at all six levels. Without it, prosperity cannot be achieved. This is self-fulfillment.

Activities of the self include thinking, desiring, imagining, understanding. Activities of the body include digestion, breathing, circulation etc.

Knowing and recognizing correspond to fulfillment/execution

The realm of the “natural” is comprised of consciousness and physiochemical levels.

Part II: Knowledge of Body/Holistic Health

Whereas many religions denigrate the body as an impediment to enlightenment, it is an as important as the self/jeevan in achieving their joint purpose, including the following.

The four dimensions of human living:

1. Work prosperity, to ensure health, and fulfill the body’s aim/authenticate understanding

2. Behavior mutual fulfillment justice3. Thought clarity/resolution/holistic solutions/harmony4. Realization peace, contentment, eternal bliss/lasting happiness for

all/ananda

Compare with the first of the eight steps of yoga (“union with god”):

I. The five yam (social principles) belonging to Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism

1. Truth/Non-lying2. Non-violence3. Non-stealing4. Non-accumulation5. Celibacy/Non-intercourse

Which resemble the Judeo-Christian “Thou Shalt Not” prohibitions

II. The five Niyam

1. Schauch – Cleansing the body through excretion, the mind through the senses2. Sautosh – Satisfaction/contentment ~ mind-/desire-control3. Tap – Dabbling in extremes (e.g. temperature) in order to steel oneself

against distraction while meditating4. Swadhyay – Self-study & of spiritual literature connecting to the object of

attainment5. Ishwar pranidhan – Attribution of all events to god (vs. ego i.e. humility/

surrender)

III. Asana

Pantanjali has only one line on poses in the Yoga Sutras, that they are used “To be in a state where stability/calmness is possible.” This aspect has since been fetishized and yoga metonymized as exercise or stretches.

IV. Pranayam

Breath control mind-control

V. Pratyahar

Literally “opposite” – the turning of senses inward

VI. Dharana

Focussing on one image

VII. Dyhan

Moving concentration from one image to one point. Many methods, e.g. tantra (also fetishized since) – control of senses; mantra – repetitive sound, yantra – an instrument/tool for focusing vision

VIII. Samadhi

Elimination of that one point, leaving (authentic) self/soul & god; union

Nagraji followed this path for 17 years, achieved Samadhi, but became convinced that this was not human perfection. It did not answer the question of origins: Why self? Was the world illusory after all? Why/Who created it/Where did it come from? The “a ha” moment gave way to bodily baggage. His conviction was that the ineffable sublimity of union ought to persist, be continuous. The world is real, not maya/illusion. Thus, he concluded, samadhi was not true enlightenment; this was the genesis of jeevan vidya – an easier and more natural path to enlightenment, with the bonus of happiness!

The next three years, he put dhyan and dharana into samadhi, (the state where there is supposed to be nothing – i.e. the unconditioned), where the nature of each thing introduced revealed itself. He put earth in, thought his answer was a dream, and over the course of three years, inserted the component parts of reality in order to “view” their/its nature, down to the atomic level.

Knowledge of the Body (continued):

Summary: All needs of the body, like it, are temporary (and the self & its needs, continuous). We need a body for verification of the self’s purpose, which is true identity.

Holistic health is not simply the absence of disease; it has two aspects that need to be in balance, each composed of two parts:

1. Physical – Harmony and integration in all parts of bodya. Dietb. LIfestyle

2. Psychological/Mental – Body is able to express the message of “I” and fulfill the need of the I. So, for example, memory loss is a health issue.

a. Behavior (I relating to I)

b. Thought (I)

Sanyam – I’s acceptance of the responsibility to nourish, protect, and properly use the body through proper understanding of health.

The two major orifices for intake are the nose, for gas, and the mouth for gasses, liquids, and solids (i.e. snorting material = unnatural). The two major processes going on are oxygenation and digestion—the breakdown and integration of plant nature, or what is naturally nutritive, into its own nature. What is not integrated is deemed foreign and excreted. This rejection, which we say results in “waste,” is only “foreign” to us but excrement constitutes potential food for other bodies. Soil is a foreign body, but with the help of plants, we can make the best use of its chemical properties, vitamins, minerals, etc. Removing these and attempting to enrich food will be a more energy intensive and less efficient process, in terms of uptake as well.

Nature does not waste, which is a negative way of stating the stronger claim that everything has a purpose [ But is nature extravagant? What about vestigial structures? Opulence? Banyan’s billions of seeds].

The four modes of excretion are:

1. Intestines2. Kidneys3. Lungs4. Skin

Foreign matter that is not excreted can become toxic and contribute to dis-ease. In other words, “ease” or well-functioning is our natural state.

Ingesting less nutritious food (with more foreign material) will require bigger portions to satisfy the bodies demand and will put greater demands on the body’s excretive systems. Thus, a proper diet will pay attention to both quality and quantity; they are inversely proportional. Proper diet entails understanding the human body’s design and what nature provides for these needs as much as the properties of food. The veda’s claimed that we are what we eat 5,000 years ago but vegetarians can be cruel too. It is us determining what we eat that is the issue: changing our mental state will have a trickle-down effect on diet.

Perhaps first in importance under the heading of Lifestyle is proper daily routine. Sleep is principal in this category. Avoiding great variation is very important but this does not mean adhering to a rigid structure.

Another component of health is proper breathing. Pranayama breathing cleans the body through the lungs. Enema cleans body through intestine. Sauna cleans the body through the pores (cf. sauch, the first niyam principal). One way to do this is to count breaths while in shavasana. Proper breathing is a precursor to/corollary with…

Proper exercise. Ideally, this comes from productive labor or its focus is relating with other people. Burning calories is a waste, e.g. the repetitiveness of gym workouts. Health ≠ what is often called fitness. Extreme athletes, professional athletes, especially in contact sports, and bodybuilders may be working through their activity but they abuse their bodies for the sake of glory or attention.

(Games can contribute to health and cooperation but sport often becomes more a matter of competition, winning, glory—the attempt to establish identity through uniqueness (at the expense of another); this is disconnection. For fans too, sport seems to connect people but actually contributes to violence and othering.

Games and recreation are the result of boredom. This is a waste of time and potentially, resources, with expensive equipment. Travel and technology/gadgetry could fall into this category as well; if it does not involve visiting others or true learning, it can be an unnecessary diversion of resources and a distraction from one’s own community. Mindful labor can bring joy, especially when done in groups, e.g. with song. True re-creation is productive, not consumptive; matters of consumption do not require physical things.)

Proper relaxation is also necessary and should be used in conjunction with exercise. Repetition of mantras can calm the mind but this is temporary. Recognition of the universe’s harmony is the principal means of ensuring bodily harmony.

The are psychological/mental components of health that belong to the continuous realm:

Behavior is also a component of health. Living according to meaning and purpose of life and being capable/actualizing mutually fulfilling relationships.

Conflict-free thought, rooted in resolution. Anything else will be reflected in the body.

Family

Defined as the unit where the needs of I and body can be fulfilled completely. If this is not happening, if there is conflict or lack, there is not truly family. It is also the place that members are able to gain knowledge, from self to existence, AND to ensure the physical requirements of the body—the understanding and skills that lead to a fulfilling life. This is also the definition of education.

The needs of I cannot be fulfilled living alone but living together is not enough; humans must be able to live together in harmony within self, with others, with nature, in order to be family and be called educated.

Therefore, justice is the first requirement of family; it is emotional psychological in nature, meaning it deals with self. It entails reaching and holding the “satisfaction

point” of human behavior. This is a balance between human beings. The other requirement is occupation, which speaks to the needs of the body. It has two parts:

1. Production 2. Exchange

Every relationship has definite expectations. Without recognition and acknowledgement of these expectations in a relationship, there cannot be proper function, which is mutual fulfillment.

For example with the birth of a child, there are (bodily) expectations regarding 1. nourishment and 2. protection. There are also self-related expectations regarding satisfaction of their curiosity, i.e. 3. education re: the Q of “why” e.g. death that is not based in belief but is verifiable. Children genuinely want to know; parents do a disservice by dismissing these queries. They are owed/entitled to 4. Verification.

The needs/expectations of the child become the duties/responsibilities of the parent, with the addition of occupation and procreation. One doesn’t need to nourished and protected when they are able/equipped to nourish and protect. Each of these exist at four levels:

1. Acceptance of responsibility2. Fulfillment of responsibility3. Mutual evaluation4. Mutual fulfillment

“Mother” is defined as one, regardless of gender or maternity, who does the above for nourishment. “Father” is the one that accepts the above vis-à-vis protection. “Teacher/guru” is the one who accepts #3. “Brother/sisters/friends” are those with whom we verify. “Companion/comrade” are those with whom we work (occupation). Finally, husband and wife are those who procreate.

Put differently,

1. Relationships are between I & I (not body to body. N.b. We needn’t build, make, create, relationships; they preexist).

2. There are expectations between I & I. 3. These expectations can be recognized.4. Fulfillment of these expectations leads to mutual happiness.

These expectations are nine; they are innate desires/impulses/instincts:

I. Trust (the foundational value) – the assurance that the other is always concerned with my happiness and would never harm.

II. Respect III. AffectionIV. Care/motherliness [nurturance?]V. Guidance/fatherliness

VI. Gratitude

VII. GloryVIII. Reverence

IX. Love (the complete value)

Justice means putting relationships first, above conditioned desires. It entails:

1. The recognition of these expectations2. Fulfillment of values3. Mutual evaluation4. Mutual fulfillment

I. Trust – being insured in the intention of every human being. Intention does not always match competence. In children and madmen, we ignore this. However, every adult wants to be happy and wants to make others so but fails on both levels, as others fail them. However, we doubt that others universally want to make us happy. Why are we not as concerned by any doubt that we always want to make others happy? What is the meaning of this asymmetry of intention? Fixating on what the other is doing (actions that seem contrary to natural compassion stemming from conditioning) vs. what they really want, is inconsistent; one must remain focused on intention (mine and theirs). If everyone wants trust, to trust, but I doubt the same desire in others, I am violating my own nature, creating discomfort.

Summary of day 5:

The moment we recognize relationship there are immediately expectations. Trust must be ensured for these to be fulfilled. This is the first consideration, in romantic relationships or otherwise. However, the concern is often body-oriented instead—can the family pay the dowry, can the man support the woman, or even superficial criteria like shared interests or activities.

There is an asymmetry in many relationships insofar as most people’s focus on their wants/needs but focus on others’ deeds/acts. Everyone wants to do good; anyone who hurts is hurting inside and is not assured of this. This signals a discrepancy between competency/ability and intention. Therefore, in a conflict, we need to

1. Check our competence (act, facial expression etc) of which we may not have been fully aware, and take responsibility

2. Refocus on the other’s intention, and3. Ask whether there is a way we can help the other’s competence and if not,

resolve to develop our own ability to further their understanding

Understanding implies ability/competence. This may not entail lecturing, just kindness. A wise person is able to help anyone, regardless of her situation. The proof of understanding is the ability to help others (understand).

II. Respect – Sammaan ~ Samyak (Right[eous])+ Evaluation seeing things as they are. Or negatively, this means neither over nor under-evaluating/devaluating. These extremes can lead to depression and ego-inflation, respectively. Yet we do this all the time, esp when dealing with children: “You are a princess” or “You are just a baby.” We tend to judge/recognize based on:

a. body – age, sex, race, caste, appearance, strengthb. belief – sects, -isms [Is this true of the institution only? Even miracles

and the negation of self in asceticism relate to the body. This is divisive]

c. wealth – class, status/positiond. skills – ability, education/literacye. nationality – language, culturex

Focusing on any of these actually does disrespect. Even recognition of any of these ostensible similarities does both parties disrespect (i.e. including the self that focuses on these for identity).

Language does not help in respecting the divide between self/I/jeevan and body: e.g. “I am 32 years old” when the I is timeless.

Every self is a combination of self and body. Every human has thoughts and desires, including understanding. The realization that the other is just like me is constitutive of respect. When people want to relate, they focus on similarities but they unwittingly focus on aspects of their personhood that does not fully respect themselves. For this reason, one must be careful as self-identifying as a “coexistentialist.” In order to find unity, we must find the real commonality—humanity. Respect follows naturally from trust; it is also the source of inner-confidence.

III. Affection – Union in, with, and for, satisfaction/fulfillment. Two who lack (trust and respect and therefore) fulfillment who are attempting union will be frustrated in finding it in the other. This needs to be found in at least one other person, ideally parents, in order to arise with others.

IV. Care – accepting the responsibility to nourish; the satisfaction point of nourishment, which proceeds without expectation of reciprocation. It is the only of the eight values that is associated with the body.

V. Guidance – proposing so that others can have knowledge about self and existence

VI. Gratitude - acceptance of guidance. The foundational value to move toward knowledge; without it, comprehension of knowledge is impossible; the ego will obstruct. This is the expressed in the acknowledgement portion of books, including Babaji’s.

VII. Glory – gaurav – requires understanding excellence, which is defined as knowledge of the six levels and living in harmony with/through them. Glory is the recognition of excellence and good feeling that comes with it.

VIII. Reverence – the desire/attempt to emulate excellence.

IX. Love – the recognition that there is a relation with every single entity in existence, that there is only coexistence.

I. The proof of Trust is Cooperation and collaboration, becoming complimentary to every entity in the universe.

II. Respect Appreciation.

III. Affection Commitment

IV. Care Generosity; “let live and live” ethos

V. Guidance Approachability/Sahajata ~ easygoingness or naturalness

VI. Gratitude Humility/gentleness

VII. Glory Esteem/vandana

VIII. Reverence Worship in the form of imitation

IX. Love absolute Unity; the absence of otherness

Summary of fifth day:

Relationships are defined as commitments for completeness. Completeness in all things:

1. In work, in ensuring prosperity, which is impossible to do alone. This is turn guarantees the health of bodies, (nourishment, protection, etc).

2. In behavior, it ensures justice—mutual fulfillment. Evaluating things this way, rather than preference, profit, or health, leads to happiness/fulfillment of emotional needs.

3. In thought, this means freedom from conflict and contradiction; complete resolution, which leads to lasting joy, or

4. Realization

Relationship could also mean the achievement of one’s true aim—by having harmony at all four levels: 1. Individually, through resolutions (holistic solutions/clarity/understanding from self to existence) 2. In the family, by ensuring prosperity 3. By living with trust in society, fearlessly, and with security 4. And in coexistence with nature

Q: How many members should be in a family? A minimum of five; three generations. In this way, family is a representation of the whole of society, relating between

generations. Parents often think once their children are grown, their life begins again and they must adapt to solitude, at least in generational terms. But this does not reflect society’s makeup. Grandparents are good at making themselves childlike, and they have interacted with their grandparents as children, bridging a gap of 150+ yrs in terms of knowledge. Paradoxically, they have similar psychological and bodily needs at their extremes. Since humans wish to connect with all of humanity, intergenerational families are the most natural for human consciousness. Herding age groups together, whether in pre-school or retirement homes, are a symptom of a flawed (socio)economic model that works against the needs of both I and body. Even if these institutions are able to provide for bodily needs, their care—daycare, health care—will not reach the emotional needs.

Three things necessary to fulfill familial needs are justice, production, and exchange (the latter two from occupation, in turn from prosperity, in turn from the body; justice stemming from the I). Most families engage solely in exchange. Others are engaging solely in the other two realms. For example, teachers deal in knowledge; farmers solely produce.

Justice tells us what we need, then we can address some (though never all, esp. communication and transport) of these needs. Knowledge, happiness, feelings are unable to be exchanged for. Yet the most well-rewarded individuals in society exchange non-physical things (singing, dancing, acting) for physical.

But is anything else required? Yes, this is where society comes in.

Society

1. Education – to learn new skills, lest families become specialists, gaining their identity from one activity. A related concept is samskara—the understanding to live in harmony from self to existence; wisdom—what is being transmitted in education. Ensures resolution.

2. Health – families should be self-reliant re: Sanyam—the understanding to keep the body well. Though not every family can be expected to be entirely self-contained in this respect, e.g. in emergencies, knowledge of health will ensure prosperity.

3. Because work is not always guaranteed to end in actual Productivity (e.g. natural disasters), society is necessary to provide insurance, in the form of (and ensure prosperity and coexistence)

4. Storage – the family might have a silo or savings but society should also back up their rainy-day funds. This falls under the realm of exchange but should do proceed without usury, exploitation, or profit. Ensures trust and prosperity.

5. In other words, it should be Just, resulting in real security—enrichment, protection, and, most importantly, proper use of resources. Ensures trust and coexistence.

Ten families (of about 5-10) form a community, or family group of about 100, (families, not individuals, form community, but remember that family need not be blood related). These communities can unite to form a family village of approximately 1,000. A committee can be formed from representatives, one self-selected from each family, to reexamine the group’s efficacy fulfilling the preceding five criteria. Out of these ten, one representative will be chosen for a village-level committee, who are responsible for sustaining a health and educational system. This is the definition of self-reliance. This model would be replicated in a village group [town?], then city, state, up to a world family—the undivided society or universal order: a state in which the collective knowledge and facility of the human race accrues to each through communication.

There are no ministries necessary beyond this five. Services such as “defense” or police, will be dispensable. Fire will be covered under security.

Cf. Babaji’s book on Cyclical Economics and Behavior-Centered Sociology

Summary of Sixth Day

Proof of individual knowledge/clarity within occurs in the family, resulting in prosperity, which his a sort of peace, and happiness. It adds the body to I, thus, resources are needed to avoid exploitation and other deprivation. We must guarantee prosperity in other families, up to the world family, in order to ensure our own. Concern must be global but production remains local in order to reduce shipping by eating seasonal foods. This can also be better for one; e.g. nature yields water-filled fruits when we need it most.

Beyond this, we relate with other families and the larger world through

1. Exchange2. Weddings3. Education4. Health5. System

Technology should not replace human creativity but enhances it (e.g. electricity) but it also must be eco-friendly.

Education is something for which none should have to pay. Children should not need more than 2-3 hrs of instruction but an hour of labor can be contributed in exchange for teaching to run the school. Even though the social interaction of grade school can and younger be salutary, its substance should be understanding and

skills; excellence. The questioning phase from pre-school period should not wither but must be cultivated. Self-reliance should arise by grade 3-4.

Even human seeks knowledge. In the form of comprehension of existence, it leads to wisdom, making individual’s aims definite (resolution, trust, prosperity, coexistence). Relating to humans in an emotionally fulfilling way means behaving with justice. After ensuring justice, work, no matter what is it, will ensure prosperity for self, other, and enrich nature. Participating in all of this together leads to a self-organized and free individual and genuinely free individuals contribute to an undivided/unified/just society. When secured, this leads to a situation in which (mutual) trust rules, leading to right conduct. This ensures universal human education, constitution, order (law as reform), that in turn ensures the continuity of humane civilization. This is all a confirmation of wisdom/human aims, completing the circle.

An individual making a change in society is like a subatomic particle making a change in an object. Atoms are what participates in structure, as does family, the atomic unit of society.

Nature

Def – anything that can be captured by the five senses. This would apply as easily to a TV as it would a tree—matter as well as plant, animal, and human. When the cyclical relationship between these categories is broken, as with the production of plastic, we call it unnatural.

Plants differ from matter in that it uses air, water, and minerals, to grow, respire, and reproduce. This can be thought of as digestion—the process by which it incorporates these inputs into its own form or nature. We can call this the vital order.

Rather than locomotion or presence of a brain, the chief manner in which animals differ from plants is in their ability to begin to approximate thought. They can change their conduct, learn behavior, “assume” and change their assumptions (~belief), even in ways that might seem to be against their nature. However, it is this very ability to change their nature and assumptions (esp in regard to humans) that defines them—e.g. the ability of domestics to respond to name and be trained. Therefore, animals not exhibiting this characteristic, like certain insects [≠bees?], and are more dependent on their particular conditions, will be included in the vital order.

Humans add to this faculty imagination and the propensity to question. These activities deserve the name consciousness. Knowledge can only take place here.

Changes at the subatomic level determine properties, which are definite, and consistent across space and time. Physical law is continuous across the four areas.

In the plant order, there is variation in the number and quality of seeds. Not all sprout. Thus, reproduction is not a matter of pure physical law. Rather than germination rate, our focus should be on the ability of plants to maintain an ecosystemic balance.

Exist/ence – Asti/tva: is/essence or order.

We are unconcerned with what has been and what will be but what presently exists, the unity of:

1. Nature is divided into the inert and conscious realms but they form a unit, One. and

2. Emptiness/Space – Vyapak – pervasiveness (noun). The possibility of motion [cf Aristotle’s physics] but also ~ Brahma/God [cf Aristotle’s metaphysics]

a. The space between in an atomic nucleus and electrons if it were the size of a soccer ball, would be 20-30 miles.

b. There is no activity here; it is therefore the precondition for both nature (~ “matter” )and energy

c. i.e. the Zero; formlessnessd. defies the imagination, the medium of which is form; understanding

space requires comprehension, through another faculty: atma—the soul (hence the unlimited desire for knowledge)

e. there is no space within space, nor is there pressure, nor waves, for this would be activity or motion, for which space is antecedent

Nature and Space are constant. Neither created the other; they coexist.

Units only make sense in the context of the space around them, from our planet, to solar system, to galaxy, to universe. This logically holds even in an expanding universe. Existence is free from boundaries, it is unlimited, measureless, infinite, all-pervading. Space divides matter/nature. Remove space (in time) and you have all the matter in the world in one point—the singularity that we are told preceded the big bang. However, it is the interconnectivity of space and matter/nature that makes existence.

Space is permeable: it is transparent but does not constitute a barrier. Therefore, technically speaking, nothing manmade can be transparent, only translucent. It is homogenous: understanding space in one place means understanding it everywhere. The “final frontier” to understand space is in the soul.

Every entity in nature has definite distance. Energy must be added, e.g. to separate solids, from picking up one object from off the floor, to melting or atomizing a metal. The introduction of energy seems to increase intra-molecular distance, however, what is actually taking place is simply a movement of particles (that is changing the state of matter and thereby chemical/physical law). These are never at rest.

[Nuclear technology seems to produce energy but actually represents the ultimate regression in the human species. This is anti-development/anti-anthropic/moving away from consciousness: interfering with the definite distances between nuclei and in the fission and fusion processes that normally take place at the distance of sun to earth. Turning the earth into a sun—a place with only two types of atoms—reverses the fundamental basis of the natural order and militates not only against human existence, but all diversity (includingmatter order, water and soil).]

Space is complete in the sense that it is rest. But it is also constant, equilibrium, complete, changeless energy, hence vyapak. This cannot be captured or diminished, frustrating entropy. Electrons in the atoms that comprise the unit of nature are always in motion. This is relative, or purposive energy. It is the coexistence of the latter the former, that is, of relative energy in the constant energy of space that together yield/guarantee abundance. a.k.a. God. It is unborn, indestructible, ceaseless, or positively speaking, constantly present (nitya vartmaan). Nature does not come from God; it is existing in God, which describes coexistentialism.

Form is submerged in formlessness, always in three ways, by being:

1. soaked, like cotton or sponge and therefore energized force electromagnetism mutual “recognition” of particles

2. surrounded, which regulates or controls every entity, indicating a definite principal, or law, netting balance

3. dipped, like iron or musketball, the space around allows function, the translation of force to motion, for example.

a. Effort +b. Motion =c. A certain tendency to come together, i.e. Constitution – the

particular atomic makeup. This is development.

Effort is only expended for the sake of effortlessness, which can be achieved after the 10 activities of self, vs. 4.5). This is called knowledge, the natural state of human consciousness.

Motion does not cease in this state but it becomes complete.

These characteristics are not available via imagination. Nature is therefore constantly changing but by virtue of the preceding, the pervasiveness of space and its energetic features, nature takes part in its perfection or completeness. This is development.

Consciousness is the only complete “atom,” freed from bondage—liberated [~moksha?] from accepting and donating, giving and taking, i.e. self-sufficient. What this translates to individually is a state in which thought, desire, and choices are guided by something definite (vs. their absence)—whereby the human does what humans are meant to do.

Soul is the nucleus of the consciousness atom, which has the activities of realization (anu/bhav – the totality of existence in its sequence; order) and actualization. Its four orbits[/valences?] correspond to the remaining eight activities of self (in terms of force and power/state and motion). Activities proceed at 2n^2: 2+8++18+32 = 61 x 2 = 122 total.

Space is knowledge, it’s presence/acknowledgement is comprehension. This is not demonstrated by rote learning or memorization but by living accordingly in prosperity. To say we know an entity, including ourselves, we must understand entities’ four qualities, only one of which is available to the senses:

1. Structure connotes three qualities:a. Shape – seen with eyes, but eyes only see 180* of objects. Through

mathematics, we can “see” the rest.b. Volume – these are limited to the latter sort of seeingc. Density

The complete structure of any entity can be seen through mathematics; it completes our (field of) vision [cf. Greekdefinitionof mathematics according to Heidegger].

2. Quality – the effect of two units acting on each other determines attributes 3. Nature – participation in higher order4. Innateness – everything is in order within itself

We now only understand science through the senses/causation but the language of Reason—“why, what, & how” questions of children are significant—they are the stuff of metaphysics, yet ignored. Many of these answers become “pat” superstion by the age of six (cf recurrence of fear due to ghosts). According to Nagraji, “every entity is in order within itself [dharma] and participates in higher order.” When this is true of the self, participation leads to harmony.

Nature is comprised of physiochemical/temporary and conscious/continuous aspects that coexists with space (metaphysics). The former, temporal order can be further divided into the matter order and vital order. Matter can be subdivided into atoms, molecules, and their structure dictates their state, solid or liquid. The study of these is called physics and chemistry, respectively. The manifestations of the vital order are plant, animal body, and human body (biology). When added to the aspects of the conscious order this yields an animal order and a knowledge order (psychology), itself begetting the other social sciences.

We limit the study of growth and development to the hard sciences’ treatment of the matter order. In order to do so, we exploit the vital order. This is accumulation, not growth. Furthermore, we combine biology and the social sciences, imagining that humans are animals. However, animals’ motivations are limited to bodily concerns—food, fear, procreation, and sleep. While humans share the concern about food

and fear, they also look for satisfaction in sex and comfort. But it is the fixation on these pursuits that result in envy, greed, adultery, cruelty.

Last/Complete Day

Nagraji never broaches do’s and don’ts, even with his own grandchildren, even as a doctor; he will only treat/teach if asked. When you meet Nagraji, he will greet you, “Hari har” Vishnu + Shivu; God (state) + Nature (motion/change).

The assurance of enlightenment comes from the freedom of conflict in all relationships, human and otherwise.

Human Conduct:

The goal is for our conduct to become definite. There are three aspects: Value/”Instrinsicness”, Character, and Policy

1. Value/”Intrinsicness” – ensures harmony within me and all relationshipsa. Jeevan values

i. Happinessii. Peace

iii. Contentmentiv. Bliss/Ananda

b. Human values (Jeevan + body)i. (inner) Strength/Altruism/Dheerata = Commitment to live

with Justice (defined as mutual fulfillment/maintaining the satisfaction pt btwn humans)

ii. Courage/Bravery/Veerata = the ability to inspire/empower others to live with justice—the real way for all to be free from fear. Process is also en-couraging

iii. Generosity/Udarata = Investment of entire of entire resources, body, mind, and wealth

iv. Kindness/Daya = helping to enhance others’ ability. In order to understand this and the next two values, we need to understand the relationship between

1. Potentiality—the inherence of natural acceptance2. Ability—which exists in a virtuous relationship with 3. Receptivity

This is≠ judgmentv. Grace/Benevolence/Kripa = proposing knowledge relevant to

living in prosperity in a manner so that others can receive.vi. Compassion/Karuna = combination of the previous two (the

highest human virtue according to Buddha)

When we attend Human values, jeevan values are accomplished

c. Family values (see 18 previous)d. Natural values (relating to the rest of nature, matter, plants, and

animals)i. Utility – for nourishment, protection, and proper use of the

bodyii. Art – fulfillment of the needs of the self: justice, dharma, and

truth

For a total of 30 values, bringing trust, assurance, fearlessness, and togetherness.

2. Character – ensures harmony in societya. Fidelity/swa-purush nari, primarily between husband and wife, as

infidelity leads to conflict.b. “Self-wealth”/swa-dhan – either being involved in production, or

being recognized with a prize; derived from utility vs. art value, contra comparative advantage. Opposite of stealing/taking others’ wealth

c. Kind work-behavior/Daya purna (completely kind) Karya-byavahar – leading to mutual prosperity and happiness cf definition of Kindness before; opposite of cruelty

3. Policy – ensures the continuity of Value and Character througha. Economic – enrichment of all three resources

i. Health (body)ii. Understanding (mind/jeevan)

iii. Prosperity (wealth)b. Political – protection/preservation for future generations of the

previousc. Religious/Dharma – proper use of these resources

Human Consciousness:

1. Subhuman/animalistic consciousness leads to the following behaviorsa. Subjugation (theft)b. Deceptiveness (lying/cheating)c. Cruelty (injuring/killing)

Informed by the following viewpoints

i. Likingii. Health

iii. Profit

And the following motivations/concerns

1. Food2. Fear

3. Sex/Sensual pleasure4. Comfort

2. Human consciousness instead displays

a. Strengthb. Couragec. Generosity

With a viewpoint of Justice and concern with

1. Progeny2. Prosperity/wealth, and 3. Acclaim – being recognized for goodness/the worthy subject of

reverence

3. Saintly consciousness manifests as:

1. Kindness2. Grace

With a viewpoint consistent with/adhering to dharma, and having fulfilled the above (progeny and prosperity) so they can focus on helping society, garnering acclaim

4 . Divine consciousness is complete compassion and a viewpoint from truth, consistent with coexistence and unchanging. Any concern with acclaim falls away, to be replaced by universal goodness—constant contribution to all humans and all levels (nature, universe).